. Conclusion date now July 28, 2023
Following concerns by local and international investors, President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the adjustment of the schedule for 2022/23 Deep Offshore Oil block Mini-bid Round calendar.
Investors had expressed concerns that the schedule for the bid was too close to the terminal date of the present administration on May 29.
To boost confidence in the transparency and continuity of the bid process, the President was advised to consider an adjustment to the earlier calendar to accommodate the concerns.
Following the approval by President Buhari in his capacity as the Petroleum Resources Minister, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) announced the revision of the Deep Offshore Oil block Bid Round Schedule.
The revision involves the extension of the deadline for the submission of Technical/Commercial bids to May 19, 2023, as well as the timeline for concluding activities of contract negotiations and signing between July 3 and 28, 2023.
The Commission Chief Executive, Gbenga Komolafe said the 2022/23 Deep Offshore Oil block Mini-bid Round was progressing in accordance with the Bid Round Schedule published as part of the Bid Round Guidelines.
The outstanding activities for the conclusion of the exercise, Komolafe said, include the Technical/Commercial Bid Submission and the Ministerial Consent/Contract Negotiation and Signing.
The Technical/Commercial bid submission, he explained, involves Data access, purchase, evaluation, bid preparation and submission; Bid evaluation and publication of results was well as Commercial bid conference and announcement of winners.
The CCE restated that the Commission was fully committed to conducting the bid round in a manner that guarantees the achievement of the objectives of the exercise, pointing out that participation was both robust and beneficial to key stakeholders.
The CCE said constant interrogation and oversight of the process revealed two concerns which the Commission felt might impact the success of the exercise if not immediately addressed.
The concerns were the plan to conclude the bid process before transition to the new government and the need to guarantee participation of qualified indigenous companies, working collaboratively with multinationals and the International Oil Companies (IOCs) to leverage technology, funding and expertise in the deep offshore.
The Commission, he said, had already announced the requirement for joint venture (JV) arrangements between IOCs and indigenous companies and amended the Guidelines accordingly.
“This measure not only addresses the second concern, but is also in consonance with, and supports the Nigerian Content requirements of the Bid Round. It is also in accordance with Section 16(1)(a) of the Nigerian Constitution which provides that resources of the nation shall be harnessed in a manner that promotes national prosperity and efficient, dynamic and self-sustaining economy.
“The extension of time is also to afford interested multinationals and IOCs enough time to enter into, and conclude the necessary joint venture arrangements as well as allow for proper evaluation of relevant data by all bidders,” the CCE said.
